Valentine's Day Dreams
by Kameka
Summary: a Valentine’s Day story that centers on Hannah, because she’s adorable and we haven’t seen that much of her on screen.


Title:  Valentine's Day Dreams

By: Kameka

Rating: G

Disclaimer: Characters that you know from the show of Wild Card do not belong to me; Brian and any original characters do.  No infringement is intended and I made no money off this – please don't sue me.

Notes:  This story was originally started off as a round robin – which never got around.  I ended up writing it on my own.  I do thank Katie, however, for the name of the little boy in this story and the original inspiration (which was Hannah liking a boy.)  I also thank Aby and Kimmers for reading over it and offering suggestions (beta'ing).  The information on the properties of stones is all true and taken from a variety of sources.  Rave is a real store (at least down here in Florida.)

Summary: a Valentine's Day story that centers on Hannah, because she's adorable and we haven't seen that much of her on screen.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Hannah Woodall looked over from the worksheet she was working on for her homework to watch her aunt.  It was still early, dinner having been eaten and her older siblings doing the clean up that was needed, and her aunt was relaxing nicely after working at the office all day.  "Aunt Zoe?"

Zoe Busiek looked up from the magazine she was reading and smiled at the little girl.  "Yes, Hannah?  Do you need some help with your homework?"

"Not right now," she told her with a grin.  "Can you take me shopping?"

"Shopping?"

"Yeah; it's Valentine's Day next week and we're allowed to give out candy and cards and small presents at school.  Can we go get some?"

"Would it be okay if we go this weekend?"  Zoe watched as Hannah bit her lip slightly before nodding. "What is it; what's wrong?"

"If we wait too long all of the good stuff will be gone."

"Ah!" Hannah giggled as Zoe reached out and pulled her into an exuberant hug.  "I see - then you'll be left picking through whatever everyone else left. We can't have that, can we?"  The grown woman tickled her niece, causing another round of giggles to erupt.  "How're you doing on your homework?"

"I just have two more problems and then you need to check it."

"Okay, so here's the deal, kiddo: finish up those problems and then we'll go hit the stores for your cards and candy and a couple small presents for your really close friends.  I'll go over them with you when we get back.  Deal?"  She held her hand out, accepting the smaller one in a solemn shake of agreement.

"Deal!"  Hannah quickly extricated herself and sat back down to finish her math homework.  The minute the problems were done and the pencil was dropped onto the coffee table, she jumped up with a smile.  "Can we go now?"

"Go get your coat," Zoe urged, trailing the little girl to get her own.  "Cliff, Taylor, we'll be back soon!  Is there anything you want us to pick up?"  The two teens gave negative responses and Zoe shrugged into her coat as she warned them not to open the door.  That said, she and Hannah ventured into the cold February air, hurrying as much as they could on their way to the van parked in the driveway.  They quickly climbed in and turned on the heater before heading to a nearby Target.  

They made it there in good time and hurried into the store, once again spending as little time outside in the cold night air as possible.  Finding one of the trademark red baskets to carry, Hannah claimed it and grabbed her aunt's hand to drag her as much as possible to the seasonal aisle that would be holding what they were after.  Sure enough, the two aisles were crammed with Valentine's Day paraphernalia, each side of both aisles a kaleidoscope of red, pink, and white.  

Hannah dropped Zoe's hand immediately and raced to where the boxed cards that were preferred by children were, the boxes coming in packages of around twenty cards, not including a few for the adults in their lives.  She began avidly poking through the boxes covered with cheerful cartoons and sayings, looking for the perfect ones to give out to her friends.  She was aware of Zoe hovering nearby, looking at some of the adult cards available and reaching out every once in a while to run her hand along the soft fur of a stuffed animal, waiting for Hannah to indicate that she needed help reaching something on one of the upper shelves.

"What made you think of getting your cards now?"

"I wanted to pick them out before everyone else does."

"First come, first serve."

Hannah nodded distractedly.  "Can you get me those, Aunt Zoe?"  She pointed to the boxes on the top shelf that she was interested in, smiling and thanking her aunt when they were down.  She laid them out on the floor in a neat line, that obviously being an easier way to debate the merits of one cartoon over the other, before pulling back and looking over the entire selection to see if she had missed anything.  Not seeing anything that caught her interest the second time around, she sat down on the hard tile flooring with her narrowed down selection in front of her.  "How many can I get?"

"How many people do you want to give them to?"

'My class," Hannah answered instantly, not wanting to leave anyone out.  "But I have some friends who aren't in my class; I see them at recess."

"Why don't you start with two boxes? That'll give you thirty cards easy.  If you don't have enough, I'm pretty sure that your mom saved all of the leftovers from when Taylor gave out this kind of card.  If we can't find them, we'll buy a third box or you can make some for your really close friends.  How's that?"

"Okay," she began looking over the ones she had chosen for the two best cartoons possible.

Zoe pulled a rose-colored teddy bear from the shelf in front of her and cuddled it to her chest, gently stroking the extra soft fur.  "Will you be all right if I go into the next aisle, Hannah?"  She waited until Hannah gave a nod of assent and walked around the end of the aisle they were in to get to the next one.  She was looking at various holiday trinkets when she felt a warm presence next to her.  "Hey, kiddo. You find what you wanted?"

Hannah nodded and held up her two final selections.  They were both for popular cartoons: Dexter's Lab and The Powerpuff Girls.

"Very cool," Zoe said with a grin as Hannah put them back into the red basket she carried.  "Do you have a third picked out just in case?"

"Scooby Doo, where are yoooooou?" Hannah asked with a smile, breaking down in giggles as soon as the trademark question passed her lips.

"Always a favorite," Zoe agreed with a laugh.  "Is there anything else you need?"

The little girl bit her lip slightly before nodding.  "I was wondering if," she trailed off and looked up at her aunt's inviting expression before finishing in a rush. "I could get something special for someone," she said, all of it coming out basically on one breath, something that made her sound remarkably like Zoe when caught in mid-babble.

"Someone special?" Zoe grinned when Hannah nodded. "And is this someone special a boy or a girl?"

"A boy," Hannah admitted softly.

"Does he have a name?"

Hannah cast her aunt an almost adult look of exasperation, one that reminded Zoe of Taylor's when she had insisted on meeting the guy who was taking her to the school dance.  "His name is Brian and he's in my class and he's really, really nice," Hannah informed her.

"Is he why you thought of getting the cards now?"  Zoe's only answer was the slight flushing of Hannah's fair cheeks.  "Okay! What type of 'something special' do you want to get this mysterious Brian?"

"I don't know," Hannah muttered, reaching out to gently touch a beaded velvet heart that opened to allow a person to store small keepsakes in it.  "I want it to be special but I don't want it to be too mushy."  Hannah looked up from the red velvet to her aunt.  "How can you make a boy like you, Aunt Zoe?"

"Oh, Hannah," Zoe knelt down so that she was on level with the little girl, "you can't make anybody like you."

"Oh." The single sound was full of discouragement.  "Then how can I tell if a boy does?"

"Well," Zoe thought for a minute, "I guess you can tell by how he acts around you.  Does he talk to you? Go out of his way to see you?  Maybe tease you a bit?"  Hannah looked slightly more relieved at whatever answers she had decided on for Zoe's questions.  "You really like Brian, don't you?"

"He's wonderful," she agreed enthusiastically.

"Well, someone that wonderful deserves a wonderful Valentine's Day present, right?"  Hannah nodded and they began to search through the trinkets that were in the aisle they occupied.  Unfortunately, they didn't find anything that Hannah thought was suitable, though Zoe did find a few small things to give to her friends and Hannah had added a pack of twelve small gift bags made of clear plastic and emblazoned with tiny opaque pink, red, and white hearts.  "What does he like, Hannah?  Maybe we'll think of something then."

"He really likes Science and English, but he doesn't like Math too much.  Oh, and he loves playing dodge ball and kickball," Hannah added as an afterthought.

"Science, huh? What do you say we go out tomorrow afternoon? We can stop by one of those nature stores and you can see if you find something there."

Hannah nodded excitedly, accepting that alternative.

"Good. Now," Zoe grabbed Hannah around the waist and lifted her up into her arms, burying her face against the little girl's sweet smelling neck, "you need to save me from all this candy.  I can just hear all the bags screaming at me: 'take me _hooooome_, Aunt Zoe. You need me, Zoe,'" she hurried up the aisle while carrying the giggling Hannah, who was clutching the red basket.  She continued to carry Hannah even once they had made it out of the aisle with the evil candy, setting her down finally on the counter for one of the checkout lines.  They checked out with a minimum of fuss and were soon back in the van and on the way home.

"Aunt Zoe?"

"Yeah, Hannah?"

"We can come back after we find Brian's gift, right?  I still need to get candy to pass out in school," Hannah explained, giggling as Zoe stopped at a red light and turned to stare at the little girl with wide horror-stricken eyes.

"You mean I have to go back in there?"

Hannah finally stopped giggling and reached over to pat her aunt on the arm.  "I'll protect you, Aunt Zoe."

*

The next afternoon they once again went on a shopping sojourn, this time to a smallish shopping mall that was located a bit a ways from their house.  Taylor and Cliff joined them this time, the teen and almost-teen taking advantage of a free ride to the mall, on a school night no less, to get some quality browsing or arcade time in.  Zoe assured all of the children that they wouldn't be spending the evening there: at most they'd be there an hour and there would be no major shopping done.  As it is, Taylor was bent out of shape about the fact that anyone who didn't have the assigned homework done wasn't allowed to go; she'd almost been unable to make the trip and Zoe only allowed her because her rough draft for a report was finished and just had to be edited.  They separated as soon as they were inside the high-ceilinged building, Taylor heading to check out some of her favorite shops and Cliff for the arcade that was located near the food court, both of the older children being reminded that they were meeting each other in the food court in exactly one hour.

Hannah and Zoe went to the one nature store located in the mall, one of the smaller stores there that was tucked partially out of the way, the windows crammed with items that filled science nerds' or were simply novelty items and lost between the glitz from a fancy jewelry store on one side and the wonderful smells emanating from a restaurant on the other.  They both browsed through the jam-packed store, poking through the full-to-bursting shelves and showing each other the treasures they found.  A rain stick made out of bamboo was one of them, the soothing sound of the seeds/pebbles causing Zoe to close her eyes; another was a pair of night vision goggles that people were able to put on, allowing them to see the store in an eerie phosphorous green.  They both enjoyed the time they were there, laughing at some of their discoveries, debating others.  At last they reached the back of the store.

"Aunt Zoe!" Hannah called as she raced over to a high table, dodging a few other shoppers as she did.

Zoe followed Hannah as quickly as she was able to; smiling apologies to the people she passed.  "What? What is it?"

Hannah held out a smoothly tumbled stone for her aunt's inspection.  "It's _perfect_, Aunt Zoe!"

"Definitely a cool present for a guy," Zoe agreed as she reached out to ruffle her niece's hair.  "Do you know which stones you want to get him?"

Hannah bit her lower lip gently, looking at the selection of ten or so types of tumbled stone.  "I don't know which he'll like."

"Well, how many are you thinking?"

"Two?" she looked up at her aunt hopefully.

"That's a well-rounded number.  So, we need two stones, eh?"  Zoe reached out and plucked a murky white stone from atop one of the piles.  "Quartz is always a good bet.  You know about Quartz, right?"

Hannah nodded. "We learned about it in Science class; it's one of the most common minerals to be found on Earth and makes up twelve percent of the Earth's crust."

"That's very true," she responded.  "But there are some things you don't know, too.  Did you know that stones like this used to be used for healing?  Quartz was known as 'Ice of Eternity,' and it used to be used in ceremonies to light candles.  It's also one of the seven precious substances in Buddhism.  On top of that, people used to believe, and some still do, that it helps communicate with the spirit world and traps negative energy until you can release it."

"All that," Hannah reached out for the white stone her aunt held, "for just one little stone?"

"Yep; and each color can mean something different."

"Cool; what about the rest of these?"

"Well," Zoe looked at the selection on the table and picked up a blue stone flecked with gold, "this is lapis lazuli.  It may be the sapphire of the agents and was the original pigment in ultramarine colored paint.  It's considered a holy stone by a lot of cultures and the Ten Commandments were supposedly originally written on it.  The Chinese and Japanese carve a crane symbol onto it and use it for luck.  It's also supposed to increase psychic sensitivity and shield and build the aura, when it's used with types of topaz."

Hannah accepted the blue stone gravely as Zoe reached back onto the table, smiling as she pulled a third stone down.

"This is one of my favorites," she told her niece with a grin.  "This is tiger eye," she informed the little girl as she gently stroked the smooth surface, following the alternating dark brown and golden brown bands of color with her finger.  "It got its' name because of the illusion it gives to being eye-like when cut the right way.  It's also supposed to be very good for healing eyes, physically and psychically, and it supposed to be very useful for warding off negative energies or the 'evil eye.'  It's also a symbol of all balances. And," she said as she handed the brown stone to the little girl, "it also comes in blue and gray; but it's called hawk eye then, not tiger eye."

"Where do you know all this from, Aunt Zoe??"

"I used to work in a new age store," Zoe answered with a grin.  "The histories of different stones and their applications were something I just kind of needed to know for it.  Besides, you know how I'm great at useless trivia, right?"

Hannah giggled her assent before handing her aunt another stone, this one snowflake obsidian, the deep shiny black flecked with white spots.  They continued that way for the majority of the time allotted to the shopping trip, Hannah picking out stones while Zoe dredged her memories and vast cache of trivia for information on the stones.  Finally Hannah had heard the esoteric uses and minor history for all of the stones available and was debating over which ones to give to Brian.  "May I get more than two, Aunt Zoe?"

Zoe frowned as Hannah looked up at her.  "Don't you think two for one person is enough?"

"Oh, I still want two for Brian," she earnestly assured the older woman.  "I was wondering if I could get some for other people."

"Within reason," Zoe warned the girl, watching as Hannah quickly selected two clear quartz, an amethyst, three snowflake obsidian, and four tiger-eye stones.  "Whoa! I said within reason, Hannah!"

The little girl pointed to a small sign resting beside nearby glass doors that showed to impressive displays of rock crystals to those interested.  "But they're buy one, get one free, Aunt Zoe!  They're only seventy-five cents each and if you buy one get one free, you're only paying for five!"

Zoe sighed and agreed to the expenditure, working it out to be about four dollars with the tax.  They headed to the middle of the store, where the counter and cash register was located to pay for the gifts that Hannah picked out.  They were soon on their way to the food court where they were meeting Hannah's siblings before they headed to a nearby Target, an unexpected side trip that happened when Hannah decided she had to get the Valentine's Day candy right then, and Cliff and Taylor agreed with her that they were dying for some sugar.

The side trip cost quite a bit more than the presents, everyone finding something sugary that they just _had_ to have.  Even with that, the buying of sweets was more circumspect than any of the kids would have preferred, Zoe telling them that if they wanted a large amount of candy they'd have to wait until after Valentine's Day when it was on clearance.  Candy in hand, they trooped home quickly, wanting to get inside before it got too cold outside.

*

The day before Valentine's Day dawned cloudy and cold, as was normal in Chicago at that time of year.  Because Valentine's was on a Saturday, Hannah and her classmates were giving out their cards on Friday, the closest school day.  The chaos that was the norm in the Busiek-Woodall household reigned that morning as it did every morning; Taylor trying to find the perfect outfit to wear to school, Cliff running late because he overslept and having to scramble to find all of his schoolbooks and assignments so he could use and/or turn them in that day, and Hannah making sure that she had everything she needed.  Zoe, the lone adult, drank coffee as a pick-me-up and tried to not only get ready for work but also fixed lunches for the three children, a job that she handed over to Taylor as soon as the teenager was downstairs and ready before Zoe could dart upstairs and finish getting dressed.

Hannah re-counted the cards and candy that had been residing in a small black plastic bag originally from the store Rave, wanting to make sure that she had all of the ones needed for her class as well as the ones for her teacher and other friends that she'd have to give out during her lunch hour and recess.  They had been done for almost a week, her best friend Meghan O'Reilly having come over the previous Saturday while her parents ran errands to do their cards together.  They two girls had spent over an hour laboring over the cards and taping their chosen candy to each one before they ate lunch and worked on the important ones: Valentine's cards to give to their mutual crush Brian as well as their teachers.  Once that was done, they had spent the remainder of Meghan's visit as normal little girls: listening to music and playing with Barbies, drawing and coloring, as well as watching a cartoon that they both enjoyed.

Carrying everything downstairs to where her older siblings and aunt were waiting, Hannah placed a brown lunch bag next to her aunt's oversized purse, a second one going next to Cliff's bag.

"Taylor, are you almost done?" Zoe called as she moved quickly down the stairs on her spike heels, looping the hook of a dangling through one of the holes in an ear.

"Yeah!"  The teenager called from the kitchen as she put the nutritious lunches into the brown paper bags that were waiting for them on the counter.  She carried all three out to where her aunt and younger sister were waiting, handing one off to Hannah as she stuffed her own inside the bag she picked up and slung over her shoulder.

"Cliff!"

Hannah winced as she put her own lunch into her bag and tugged slightly on the woman's hand, anxious to get going and possibly hand a few cards out before school started.  "Aunt Zoe!"

"We're leaving as soon as your brother comes down," she promised her niece.

Cliff chose that moment to race downstairs, accepting the brown bag as he moved past his older sister and stuffing the papers he had found upstairs into the bag he picked up.  "I'm ready, I'm ready," he muttered distractedly, negating the words as he moved into the living room and scanned the surfaces for anything he might have forgotten to grab earlier as he put on his coat.

"Cliff!"

"I'm coming!"  He abandoned the search, shrugging off anything left as things that would have to be turned in the next day.  He hurried out the door, quickly followed by Taylor.  Zoe had picked up the oversize striped bag that she used for a purse and was about to follow them out the door when Hannah suddenly grabbed her hand.

"Aunt Zoe!" The little girl hurried over to where she had placed the brown bag decorated with red hearts and picked it up, handing it to her aunt who looked at it in bemusement.  "You have to take this to work!"  The little girl then spied the one she had placed next to her brother's bag and sighed, picking it up to give to him in the car.  "Come on, Aunt Zoe!"

They arrived at Taylor's high school with just barely enough time for the girl to get to her first class.  The teenager said a quick goodbye and sprinted through the large double doors as the first bell rang and the halls began to rapidly clear.  Cliff's school came next, the boy getting out of the car and waving to some of his friends from the volleyball team.  Hannah grabbed his arm through the thick coat before he could move away from the van and the paper bag was thrust into his hands.

"You have to give this to Mr. Morales!" 

"Okay, okay!  Bye!"  Cliff left the van to greet his friends, the paper bag being transferred to his bag.

"Whew! Now we have some time to breathe," Zoe said with a grin as she looked in the rearview mirror and pulled away from the curb.

Hannah smiled back at her aunt, knowing that she'd have preferred it if they were on time.

"You going to tell me what's in the bag?"

She shrugged.  "Valentines.  If you'd forgotten them, then they'd be late."

"Oh?"

Hannah nodded enthusiastically.  "I didn't want to leave anyone out," she told her aunt.  "They're for Mr. Lennox and Miss. Mason."

"Oh, Hannah, you didn't have to do that," she told the girl even as she knew that it was just part of the girl's nature.

"I know I didn't; I didn't want to leave anyone out.  They have cards and candy and a present each," Hannah reported with a smile.

"You're a good kid; you know that, Hannah?"

She nodded with a self-satisfied smile.  "I know," she assured her aunt, causing the older woman to laugh as she pulled up in front of Hannah's school.

"Have fun today, okay?"

"I will!  Don't forget to give those out!" she reminded Zoe as she climbed out of the van and closed the sliding door behind her.  She watched as the light-colored van moved off, taking her aunt to work, before turning to survey the area before her for anyone she knew.  There was an extremely familiar figure standing just inside the doors that Hannah hurried towards.  "Meghan!"  She greeted her friend with a hug as she did every morning before digging into the decorated black bag to pull out one of the gift bags that had a card attached to it.  She handed it to her friend, accepting a small bag in return.  Instead of opening her present, she waited for Meghan to open hers first, expecting the squeal of excitement over the piece of tumbled snowflake obsidian.

Meghan opened the card first, grinning over the picture that Hannah had drawn on the cover of it before she went on to the bag. "Oooh, Hannah! It's so cool!"  Meghan grabbed her friend in another hug before once again admiring the shiny black rock dotted with white flecks.  "I'm going to put it on my nightstand," she promised Hannah, "right next to the picture of us!"

Hannah smiled and opened her own card to reveal a similar handmade one that was dotted with stickers.  She then opened the present to reveal a tiny white bear with a moveable head and adjustable limbs.  "Oh, Meghan, he's so cute!"  She lifted the bear to touch the soft white fur to her cold face.  "Thank you!" She hugged Meghan again before the two of them trooped off to their classroom to give their cards to Mrs. Johnson, their teacher.

The teacher was thankful for both cards and the gifts that the girls gave her, another one of the stones that Hannah and Zoe had bought together at the nature store, a quartz one instead of a snowflake obsidian, and a teddy bear key chain from Meghan.  She was also suitably impressed when Hannah reeled off some of the attributes of quartz crystals that her aunt had told her and she had remembered.

More students trickled into the classroom, putting their bags where they belonged before going back out into the halls to see their friends, it being so chilly outside that they were allowed indoors before school began.  Meghan and Hannah left their own bags by their chairs and joined them, looking for some more of their friends.

School began and everyone settled down to listen to announcements before turning in their homework from the day before and beginning to write in their journals, a practice that Mrs. Johnson had implemented for the first thirty minutes of every day.  Lunchtime came at the normal time, and everyone who had brought cards for friends pulled the ones they wanted to give out during lunch, the majority of them staying until the end of the day and passing them out in class.  Lunch was spent as it normally was, with clusters of friends and people racing from one group to another, telling jokes or playing silly games as the children ate the food prepared for them by either loved ones or the school cafeteria.  It was soon over and they once again settled into their seats at desks to begin the afternoon's lessons.

The last hour of the day was devoted to giving out cards and candy, everyone able to leave their seats and pass them out to the hand-decorated brown bags that were taped to the front of each desk as a repository before they excitedly ripped into their own and downed some of the sugared sweets that accompanied the cards.  Even the teacher got into the act, handing out heart-shaped lollipops and miniature packets and lifesavers to her students.  Both Hannah and Meghan quickly passed out their cards, giving hugs to some of the students they were closer to when they passed each other in the chaos of the classroom before huddling together at their desks, grateful that they were sat together.

Searching frantically, fearfully, wanting to find out if Brian had indeed given her something besides the hug he'd hesitantly offered in thanks for the 'really cool rocks' along with an offer to show her his rock collection.  The hug and invitation had just about made her day, though she was aware of Meghan standing a few desks away watching enviously.  Lo and behold, there was a large white card that bore Brian's name in the corner, a small heart filled with chocolates taped to the front of it.  She tore it open, smiling and blushing slightly before handing it over to a curious Meghan to read the simple message written by hand: Will you be my Valentine?

She accepted it back and carefully placed it in the envelope before rifling through the cards, amazed at everything in the bag.  She had added a good number earlier, the ones she had received during lunch, but the amount had doubled and the bag was now weighed down with candy.  Just before the afternoon announcements came on, everyone scrambled for their belongings, not wanting to stay in school for a moment longer.  They barely sat still and quiet for the afternoon announcements, the principal reminding everyone to be careful over the weekend.  The bell rang immediately after and most of the students hurrying out, Hannah pausing to offer a shy smile and a quick nod to Brian before wishing the teacher a happy Valentine's Day one last time.

She and Meghan both left the classroom, Brian falling into step beside them as he reached hesitantly for Hannah's hand as they all walked to the front of the school.  Hannah's siblings were waiting there, along with their neighbor Julian.  Brian said a quick goodbye and gave Hannah's hand a gentle squeeze before running off to where his mother was waiting for him a few cars down.

"Hannah?" Taylor made the name a teasing question.

Hannah smiled and handed the card over for her older sister to see, warning her not to damage it in any way.

"Your first boyfriend!"  Taylor swept her sister up in a hug as Cliff and Julian both reached for the card, frowning as they realized the little girl was indeed growing up.  "I think I'm jealous," she confided.

"Hey!" Julian straightened and frowned at his semi-girlfriend.

Taylor laughed and shook her head, opening the door for Hannah, Meghan and Cliff to climb in, slamming it shut behind them before climbing into the front seat of Julian's car.  "We're just going to drop you off today, okay, Meghan?"

"Where are you going?" the young girl asked the teenager who oftentimes seemed like a big sister.

"We thought we'd go see Aunt Zoe," Cliff answered for her, holding up a rose-colored teddy bear.  It was the one that Hannah had seen their aunt cuddle in Target and pointed out to her siblings on a secret trip there that they had taken.

Hannah nodded in silent agreement, reaching out for the teddy bear and playing with the lacy scarf that was wrapped around its neck.  Meghan reached out to stroke the soft fur as she and Hannah began chattering, something kept up until Julian had pulled up in the Busiek-Woodall driveway.  The Woodalls ran into their house, dropping off their bags and schoolbooks as Julian walked Meghan across to her own house.  They were soon back outside and in the car on the way to their aunt's office.

Hannah smiled as Julian took her hand and she looked up at the huge office building.  Her first Valentine's Day without her mother there, her first Valentine's Day with her aunt living with her, her first Valentine's Day spent _as_ someone's Valentine.  She just knew that the year 2004 was going to be filled with lots of firsts.

*

The End

*

Reviews are welcome!


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